The English Folk Dance and Song Society (EFDSS, or pronounced 'EFF-diss') is an organisation that promotes English folk music and folk dance. EFDSS was formed in 1932 when two organisations merged: the Folk-Song Society and the English Folk Dance Society.

Karpeles, Maud Maud Karpeles OBE, (12 November 1885 – 1 October 1976) was a British collector of folksongs and dance teacher. Early life and education Maud Pauline Karpeles was born at Lancaster Gate in Bayswater, London, in 1885. She was the third of five ...

and Frogley, Alain (2007–2011)
'English Folk Dance and Song Society'
In: ''

Grove Music Online ''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' is an encyclopedic dictionary of music and musicians. Along with the German-language '' Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart'', it is one of the largest reference works on the history and t ...

'',

Oxford Music Online ''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' is an encyclopedic dictionary of music and musicians. Along with the German-language '' Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart'', it is one of the largest reference works on the history and th ...

. Retrieved 24 October 2011. . The EFDSS, a member-based organisation, was incorporated in 1935 and became a

registered charity A charitable organization or charity is an organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being (e.g. educational, Religion, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good). The legal definitio ...

in 1963.

History

The Folk-Song Society, founded in London in 1898, focused on collecting and publishing folk songs, primarily of Britain and Ireland although there was no formal limitation. Participants included:

Lucy Broadwood Lucy Etheldred Broadwood (9 August 1858 – 22 August 1929) was an English folksong collector and researcher, and great-granddaughter of John Broadwood, founder of the piano manufacturers Broadwood and Sons. As one of the founder members of the ...

George Butterworth George Sainton Kaye Butterworth, MC (12 July 18855 August 1916) was an English composer who was best known for the orchestral idyll '' The Banks of Green Willow'' and his song settings of A. E. Housman's poems from '' A Shropshire Lad''. He wa ...

, George Gardiner, Anne Gilchrist,

Percy Grainger Percy Aldridge Grainger (born George Percy Grainger; 8 July 188220 February 1961) was an Australian-born composer, arranger and pianist who moved to the United States in 1914 and became an American citizen in 1918. In the course of a long and ...

, Henry Hammond, Ella Leather, Kate Lee, Susan Lushington, May Elliot Hobbs,

Cecil Sharp Cecil James Sharp (22 November 1859 – 23 June 1924) was an English collector of folk songs, folk dances and instrumental music, as well as a lecturer, teacher, composer and musician. He was a key figure in the folk-song revival in England dur ...

Ralph Vaughan Williams Ralph Vaughan Williams ( ; 12 October 1872– 26 August 1958) was an English composer. His works include operas, ballets, chamber music, secular and religious vocal pieces and orchestral compositions including nine symphonies, written over ...

and

Mary Augusta Wakefield Mary Augusta Wakefield (19 August 1853 – 16 September 1910) was a British composer, contralto, festival organiser, and writer. Biography Early life Wakefield was born in Kendal, where her paternal ancestors had been members of the Quakers, ...

. The English Folk Dance Society was founded in 1911 by

Maud Karpeles Maud Karpeles OBE, (12 November 1885 – 1 October 1976) was a British collector of folksongs and dance teacher. Early life and education Maud Pauline Karpeles was born at Lancaster Gate in Bayswater, London, in 1885. She was the third of fiv ...

was a leading participant. Its purpose was to preserve and promote English folk dances in their traditional forms, including

Morris Morris may refer to: Places Australia * St Morris, South Australia, place in South Australia Canada * Morris Township, Ontario, now part of the municipality of Morris-Turnberry * Rural Municipality of Morris, Manitoba ** Morris, Man ...

and

sword dances Weapon dances incorporating swords or similar weapons are recorded throughout world history. There are various traditions of Solo dance, solo and mock-battle (Pyrrhic dance, Pyrrhic) sword dances in Africa, Asia and Europe. Some traditions use ...

, traditional

social dances Social dances are dances that have social functions and context. Social dances are intended for participation rather than performance. They are often danced merely to socialise and for entertainment, though they may have ceremonial, competitiv ...

, and interpretations of the dances published by

John Playford John Playford (1623–1686) was a London bookseller, publisher, minor composer and member of the Stationers' Company. He published books on music theory, instruction books for several instruments and psalters with tunes for singing in churches. ...

. The first secretary of the society was Lady Mary Hepburn-Stuart-Forbes-Trefusis; Trefusis Hall in the EFDSS HQ, Cecil Sharp House, is named after her. One of the greatest contributions that the EFDSS made to the folk movement, both dance and song, was the

folk festival A folk festival celebrates traditional folk crafts and folk music. This list includes folk festivals worldwide, except those with only a partial focus on folk music or arts. Folk festivals may also feature folk dance or ethnic foods. Handicra ...

, starting with the

Stratford-upon-Avon Stratford-upon-Avon ( ), commonly known as Stratford, is a market town and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon (district), Stratford-on-Avon district, in the county of Warwickshire, in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands region of Engl ...

Festival in the 1940s and continuing with festivals in

Whitby Whitby is a seaside town, port and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. It is on the Yorkshire Coast at the mouth of the River Esk, North Yorkshire, River Esk and has a maritime, mineral and tourist economy. From the Middle Ages, Whitby ...

Sidmouth Sidmouth () is a town on the English Channel in Devon, South West England, southeast of Exeter. With a population of 13,258 in 2021, it is a tourist resort and a gateway to the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site. A large part of the town has ...

Holmfirth Holmfirth () is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, West Yorkshire, England. It is located south of Huddersfield and west of Barnsley; the boundary of the Peak District National Park is to the south-west. The town is sited on t ...

Chippenham Chippenham is a market town in north-west Wiltshire, England. It lies north-east of Bath, Somerset, Bath, west of London and is near the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The town was established on a crossing of the River Avon, ...

and elsewhere.

Publications

Since 1936 the EFDSS has published ''English Dance & Song'' at least four times a year. This has become the longest-established magazine devoted to folk music, dance and song in the country. ''English Dance & Song'' is aimed at stimulating the interest of the membership of the EFDSS, as well as the wider folk music and dance community. Their regular scholarly publication is ''Folk Music Journal'', published annually in December, which was formerly entitled the ''Journal of the English Folk Dance and Song Society'' until 1965. The work continues the earlier journals of the two societies: ''Journal of the Folk-Song Society'', 1899–1931; ''Journal of the English Folk Dance Society'', 1914–31.

Cecil Sharp House

The Society is based at Cecil Sharp House in Camden, North London. Originally conceived as a purpose-built headquarters for the English Folk Dance Society, and now Grade II-listed, it was designed in the neo-Georgian style by architect Henry Martineau Fletcher, and opened on 7 June 1930. The building's most striking feature is Kennedy Hall, a large concert and performance space with a sprung ballroom floor for dancing. The space features acoustic-focused design elements, courtesy of Fletcher's friend and fellow architect

Hope Bagenal Philip Hope Edward Bagenal, (11 February 1888 – 20 May 1979) was a British architectural theorist and acoustician who introduced a scientific approach to the acoustic design of buildings. Education and early career Bagenal, known by his se ...

. The building was damaged by bombing in 1940 the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. The basement and library were mostly undamaged, but the entrance, stairs, and main hall were all damaged. After the war, the architect John Eastwick-Field was commissioned to restore the building, which was reopened in 1951. The raised musicians gallery in the main hall, destroyed by the bombing, was not reinstated; in its place the British abstract pastoral painter

Ivon Hitchens Ivon Hitchens (born London, 3 March 1893 – 29 August 1979) was an English painter who started exhibiting during the 1920s. He became part of the 'London Group' of artists and exhibited with them during the 1930s. His house was bombed in 1940 d ...

was commissioned to paint a mural, which shows English folk dances and traditions. When unveiled in 1954, it was the largest single-wall mural in the United Kingdom. In addition to Kennedy Hall, Cecil Sharp House contains several smaller performance and rehearsal spaces; a café and bar; and the Vaughan Williams Memorial Library and Archive. Cecil Sharp House is an active and popular venue for concerts, as well as conferences and other private functions. In 2015, the building was voted as one of London's 20 best music venues by readers of Time Out magazine.

Recent developments

In 1998, with the folk movement strongly supported by a number of other organisations and the seeds planted by EFDSS thriving, the EFDSS altered its strategy to focus on education and archiving, with its primary goal the development of the

Vaughan Williams Memorial Library The Vaughan Williams Memorial Library (VWML) is the library and archive of the English Folk Dance and Song Society (EFDSS), located in the society's London headquarters, Cecil Sharp House. It is a multi-media library comprising books, periodi ...

as the country's national archive and resource centre for folk music, dance and song. In 2009, the society became a regularly funded organisation (now called a National Portfolio Organisation) of

Arts Council England Arts Council England is an arm's length non-departmental public body of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, Department for Culture, Media and Sport. It is also a registered charity. It was formed in 1994 when the Arts Council o ...

. In 2011 the society entered into a joint commission with

Shrewsbury Folk Festival Shrewsbury Folk Festival is an annual festival of folk and world music and traditional dance held in the town of Shrewsbury in Shropshire, England. It takes place over four days on and around the UK Late Summer bank holiday weekend (usually th ...

to create the Cecil Sharp Project, a multi-artist residential commission to create new works based on the life and collecting of

. The project took place in March 2011, the artists involved being:

Steve Knightley Steve Knightley (born 1954) is an English singer, songwriter and acoustic musician. Since 1992 he has been one half of folk/roots duo Show of Hands along with Phil Beer. Knightley was named "Songwriter of the Nineties" by BBC Radio 6 Music in ...

Andy Cutting Andy Cutting (born 18 March 1969) is an English folk musician and composer. He plays Diatonic button accordion, melodeon and is best known for writing and performing traditional Folk music of England, English folk and his own original compositi ...

, Leonard Podolak,

Jim Moray Jim Moray (born ''Douglas Oates''; 20 August 1981) is an English folk music, English folk singer, multi-instrumentalist and record producer. Recording artist While studying classical composition at the Birmingham Conservatoire, Moray release ...

Jackie Oates Jackie Oates is an English folk singer and fiddle player. Life Jackie Oates was born in Congleton in Cheshire in 1983. At the age of 18, she moved to Devon to study English literature at Exeter University and was based in Devon until 2011, ...

, Caroline Herring,

Kathryn Roberts Kathryn Roberts is an English folk singer, from Barnsley, South Yorkshire. Early career Roberts' first released recordings were on the album ''Intuition'', a collection of songs by various South Yorkshire folk artists which also included h ...

and Patsy Reid. In 2013, EFDSS launched The Full English, an ongoing archive project supported by the

Heritage Lottery Fund The National Lottery Heritage Fund, formerly the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), distributes a share of National Lottery funding, supporting a wide range of heritage projects across the United Kingdom. History The fund's predecessor bodies were ...

The Folklore Society The Folklore Society (FLS) is a registered charity under English law based in London, England for the study of folklore. Its office is at 50 Fitzroy Street, London home of the Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland. It w ...

, the National Folk Music Fund and the English Miscellany Folk Dance Group. This free and searchable resource of 44,000 records and over 58,000 digitised images is the world's biggest digital archive of traditional music and dance tunes. As well as folk music, the EFDSS is home to a number of performance artists, providing a regular performance platform for acts including the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain, the Massive Violins and the

Swingle Singers The Swingles are an a cappella vocal group. The Swingle Singers were originally formed in 1962 in Paris under the leadership of Ward Swingle. In 1973, Swingle disbanded the French group, and formed an English group known initially as Swingle I ...

. In September 2021, EFDSS opened consultation to consider changing its name, as it was felt by some that it did not represent the aims and outlook of the society. A proposed name was 'Folk Arts England', a name formerly used between 2005 and 2014 by the Association of Festival Organisers. Of 65 members surveyed in November 2021, 74% approved this name, against other proposals such as 'Folk Arts Society'. As of 2025, the organisation is still known as the English Folk Dance and Song Society.

EFDSS Gold Badge Awards

The EFDSS Gold Badge Award, created in 1922, is made to those deemed to have made exceptional contributions to folk music, dance, or the wider folk arts and folk community. Many past recipients are prominent figures not only within the folk community, but of wider British culture and society. * 1922 Lady Mary Trefusis; Grizelda Hervey * 1923

;

William Kimber William "Merry" Kimber (8 September 1872 – 26 December 1961), was an England, English concertina#Types, Anglo concertina player and Morris dancer who played a key role in the twentieth century revival of Morris Dancing, a form of traditional E ...

* 1928

; William Wells * 1929 Helen Storrow * 1930 Winifred Shuldham-Shaw * 1934 W H Bonham Carter * 1938 Anne Gilchrist; Miss E F Lawrence * 1940 Miss C Holbrow * 1943 Dr Ralph Vaughan Williams * 1945 Miss H Cornock Keen * 1946 Lady Ampthill; Frank Howes * 1948

Frederick Keel James Frederick Keel (8 May 18719 August 1954) was an English composer of art songs, baritone singer and academic. Keel was a successful recitalist and a professor of singing at the Royal Academy of Music. He combined scholarly and artistic inte ...

; R J Tabor; Rev E A White * 1950 Richard Callender * 1954 Violet Alford; Elsie Avril; Marjory Sinclair * 1956 P J Terry * 1957 Janet McCrindell * 1960 Kenneth Constable; Irene Fisher; Marjorie Heffer; Dr Robert Kenworthy Schofield; George Osborne * 1961 Kathleen Adkins; Miss L Chapin; Lily Conant; May Gadd; Margaret Grant; Sybil Lightfoot; Grace Meikle; Philip Merrill; Marjorie Penn; Evelyn Wells; Elsie Whiteman * 1962 Alec Hunter * 1963 Everal de Jersey * 1964

Mary Trevelyan Mary Trevelyan (22 January 1897 – 10 January 1983) was a British activist who was warden of the Student Movement House then founder and governor of International Students House, London, and founder of the Goats Club for foreign students. T ...

; Dorothy Bessant * 1965 Douglas Kennedy & Helen Kennedy * 1969

Harry Cox Harry Fred Cox (27 March 1885 – 6 May 1971), was a Norfolk farmworker and one of the most important singers of traditional English music of the twentieth century, on account of his large repertoire and fine singing style. His music inspire ...

; Arthur Marshall; Edward Nicol * 1970 Dr W Fisher-Cassie;

Fred Hamer Fred or FRED may refer to: People * Fred (name), including a list of people and characters with the name Mononym * Fred (cartoonist) (1931–2013), pen name of Fred Othon Aristidès, French * Fred (footballer, born 1949) (1949–2022), Fred ...

* 1971 Nan Fleming-Williams; Patrick Shuldham-Shaw * 1973 Mollie Du Cane; Dr Leonard C Luckwill * 1974 William Ganiford * 1975 A L Lloyd * 1976 Kenneth Clark; Johnson Ellwood * 1977 Stan Hugill; Rev Kenneth Loveless * 1978 Sybil Clark; Bob Copper ( Copper Family); Kathleen Mitchell * 1979 Bill Rutter * 1980 Dr Russell Wortley * 1981 Dr Lionel Bacon;

Bob Cann Bob, BOB, or B.O.B. may refer to: People, fictional characters, and named animals *Bob (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Bob (surname) * Bob (dog), a dog that received the Dickin Medal for bravery in World War II *Bob th ...

* 1982 Sam Sherry;

The Watersons The Watersons were an English folk group from Hull, Yorkshire. They performed mainly traditional songs with little or no accompaniment. Their distinctive sound came from their closely woven harmonies. They have been called the "most famous f ...

( Lal,

Norma Norma may refer to: * Norma (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) ** Norma Lizbeth Ramos, a Mexican bullying victim Astronomy *Norma (constellation) * 555 Norma, a minor asteroid * Cygnus Arm or Norma Arm, a spiral ...

and

Mike Waterson Michael Waterson (17 January 1941 – 22 June 2011) was an English writer, songwriter and folk singer. Biography Waterson was born in Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. After being orphaned at an early age, he was brought up there, w ...

, John Harrison and

Martin Carthy Martin Dominic Forbes Carthy MBE (born 21 May 1941) is an English singer and guitarist who has remained one of the most influential figures in English folk music, inspiring contemporaries such as Bob Dylan and Paul Simon, as well as later ar ...

) * 1983 Nibs Matthews; Walter Pardon; The Spinners (Tony Davis, Mick Groves, Cliff Hall and Hugh Jones) * 1984 Philip Bloy; Leslie Hyner * 1986 Hugh Rippon * 1987 Reg Hall; Ewan MacCoIl;

Peggy Seeger Margaret "Peggy" Seeger (born June 17, 1935) is an American Folk music, folk singer and songwriter. She has lived in Britain for more than 60 years and was married to the singer-songwriter Ewan MacColl until his death in 1989. She is a member ...

; Michael Yates * 1988 Joe Brown;

Ursula Vaughan Williams Joan Ursula Penton Vaughan Williams (née Lock, formerly Wood; 15 March 1911 – 23 October 2007) was an English poet and author, and biographer of her second husband, the composer Ralph Vaughan Williams. Biography Early years Ursula Vaughan ...

* 1989 Peter Dashwood; Jack Hamilton * 1990 Tom Cook; Pat Tracey * 1995 Ivor Allsop; Liza Austin; Brenda Godrich; Cyril Jones; Fred Jordan; Harry Pitts; Rex Laycock * 1996 May Beeforth; Elsie Cloughton; Tony Foxworthy; Francis Shergold * 1997 Barbara Kinsman; Ivy Romney; Cyril Swales * 1998 Jill Copper, John Copper & Jon Dudley ( Copper Family); Marjorie Fennessy; Dr Ian Russell * 1999 Roy Judge; Ron Smedley * 2001 Roy Dommett; Dr Denis Smith; Trevor Stone * 2002 Christopher Cawte; John Kirkpatrick;

Dave Swarbrick David Cyril Eric Swarbrick (5 April 1941 – 3 June 2016) was an English traditional folk musician and songwriter and one of the greatest fiddlers in the world. He was one of the most highly regarded musicians produced by the second Bri ...

* 2003 Dave Arthur;

Shirley Collins Shirley Elizabeth Collins MBE (born 5 July 1935) is an English folk singer who was a significant contributor to the British Folk Revival of the 1960s and 1970s. She often performed and recorded with her sister Dolly, whose accompaniment on ...

; Iona Opie; Roy Palmer * 2004 Steve Heap; Peter Kennedy; Geoff Rye; Malcolm Taylor * 2005

Alistair Anderson The High Level Ranters are a Northumbrian traditional musical group founded in 1964, best known for being one of the first bands in the revival of the Northumbrian smallpipes. Name and history The name was chosen as a combination of the locat ...

; Tony Engle; Phil Heaton; Aubrey O’Brien;

Doc Rowe David "Doc" Rowe (born 8 December 1944) is a folklorist, author and film-maker who lives and works in the United Kingdom. A graduate of Hornsey College of Arts, he is a prominent lecturer on and advocate for folk traditions and folk music. Desc ...

* 2007

Eliza Carthy Eliza Amy Forbes Carthy, MBE (born 23 August 1975) is an English folk musician known for both singing and playing the fiddle. She is the daughter of English folk musicians Martin Carthy and Norma Waterson. Life and career Carthy was born i ...

; Michael Heaney; Frank Purslow; Pat Wilkinson;

The Yetties The Yetties were an English folk music group, who took their name from the Dorset village of Yetminster, their childhood home. They formed in 1961 and turned professional in 1967. Their first line-up was Bob Common, Mac McCulloch, John "Bonny" ...

(Bonny Sartin, Pete Shutler and Mac McCulloch) * 2008 Ray Fisher; John Heydon;

Lou Killen Louisa "Lou" Jo Killen (born Louis Killen; 10 January 1934 – 9 August 2013) was an English folk singer from Gateshead, Tyneside, who also played the English concertina. Killen formed one of Britain's first folk clubs in 1958 in Newcastle upo ...

; Colin Ross * 2009 Jack Brown; Beryl Marriott; Roger Nicholls;

Steve Roud Steve Roud (; born 1949) is the creator of the Roud Folk Song Index and an expert on folklore and superstition. He was formerly Local Studies Librarian for the London Borough of Croydon and Honorary Librarian of the Folklore Society. Life and ...

; Derek Schofield * 2010 Jim Coleman; Vic Gammon; John Howson; Katie Howson; Taffy Thomas * 2011 Johnny Handle;

Nic Jones Nic Jones (born Nicolas Paul Jones; 9 January 1947) is an English singer, songwriter and musician. Regarded as a prominent figure of the British folk revival, he has recorded five solo albums and collaborated with various musicians. Biography ...

; George Peterson; Les Seaman; Jackie Toaduff; Eddie Upton * 2012

Bill Leader Bill Leader (born 26 December 1929) is an English recording engineer and record producer. He is particularly associated with the British folk music revival of the 1960s and 1970s, producing records by Paddy Tunney, Davey Graham, Bert Jansch, ...

; Graeme Miles * 2013

Ashley Hutchings Ashley Stephen Hutchings (born 26 January 1945), MBE, sometimes known in early years as "Tyger" Hutchings, is an English bassist, songwriter, arranger, band leader, writer and record producer. He was a founding member of three noteworthy Engli ...

; Ricky Forster; David Blick * 2014

Maddy Prior Madeleine Edith Prior MBE (born 14 August 1947) is an English folk rock singer, best known as the lead vocalist of Steeleye Span. She was born in Blackpool and moved to St Albans in her teens. Her father, Allan Prior, was co-creator of the p ...

;

Sandra Kerr Sandra Kerr (born 14 February 1942, Plaistow, Newham, Essex) is an English folk singer. Kerr sings and plays Concertina#German concertinas, English concertina, guitar, Appalachian dulcimer and autoharp. She was a member of The Critics Group fr ...

; David Leverton; Alan Bearman * 2015 Ian A. Anderson;

John Tams John Tams (born 16 February 1949) is an English actor, singer, songwriter, composer and musician born in Holbrook, Derbyshire, Holbrook, Derbyshire, the son of a Public house, publican. He first worked as a reporter for the ''Ripley, Derbyshire ...

; Rollo Woods; Paul Wilson and Marilyn Tucker (Wren Music) * 2016 Maggie Fletcher; Pete Coe and Sue Coe; Mike Wilson-Jones and Mary Wilson-Jones * 2017 Johnny Adams; Nicolas Broadbridge; Dave and Maggie Hunt; The Wilson Family * 2018

Frankie Armstrong Frankie Armstrong (born 13 January 1941) is an English singer and voice teacher. She has worked as a singer in the folk scene and the women's movement and as a trainer in social and youth work. Her repertoire ranges from traditional ballads to m ...

; John Bacon; Antony Heywood; Vic Legg * 2019 Carolyn Robson; Chris Coe; John Graham; Mike Norris;

Kate Rusby Kate Anna Rusby (born 4 December 1973) is an English folk singer-songwriter from Penistone, West Riding of Yorkshire, England. Sometimes called the "Barnsley Nightingale", she has headlined various British folk festivals, and is one of the be ...

* 2020 Paul and Liz Davenport; Benny Graham; Mick Peat * 2021 Lynette and Jim Eldon; Kerry Fletcher; Chris Metherell; Rod Stradling * 2022 Madeleine Smith; Lawrence Heath; Roger Watson; Carol and the late Gwilym Davies * 2023 Sean Goddard

References

External links

* *
English Dance and Song Magazine website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:English Folk Dance And Song Society English folk dance English folk music English folklore Ralph Vaughan Williams Arts organizations established in 1932 1932 establishments in the United Kingdom Charities based in England History of the London Borough of Camden Organisations based in the London Borough of Camden